For Americans, today, Nov. 27, is a time to sit with family and friends at the dinner table and give thanks for the bounty of food before them.

Historically, Thanksgiving days usually followed a bountiful harvest.

School children learn about the first Thanksgivng celebrated in 1691 by the Pilgrims, recent immigrants to this land, and the Native Americans.

President George Washington by proclamation established the first national Thanksgiving on Nov. 26, 1789, "as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favours of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness..."

The first president continued: "...for his kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation...for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed..."

Note in his proclamation, Washington said the giving of thanks and prayer by the citizens of this new country to God was for the government formed for their well-being, for the peace, unity and abundance provided by a higher power.

Next, Washington acknowledges the importance of the states' constitutions and in particular the Constitution of the United States.

"...for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted..."

How fitting this Thanksgiving should be celebrated but a week following executive action by this president, Barack Obama, to bypass the Constitution and Congress and prevent the legal deportation of some 4.7 million illegal immigrants.

Speaker of the House John Boehner, before Obama's speech, said: "The president has said before that 'he's not king' and he's 'not an emperor,' but he sure is acting like one."

On May 22, 1782, Col. Lewis Nicola wrote a letter, now known as the Newburgh Letter, to Washington.

He stated "the ineffectiveness of the Congress during the war had demonstrated the inadequacy of republican government."

Nicola suggested Washington become King of the United States.

To this Washington replied: "You could not have found a person to whom your schemes are more disagreeable."

The first president apparently was aware of something the 44th president is not.

We are a nation of laws, not presidential edicts.

Whether this Congress or the 144th Congress, taking seat in January 2015, can or will do anything about Obama's stretching the limits of his powers remains to be seen.

Perhaps our newly elected representatives in Congress need to be reminded of another part of Washington's Thanksgiving message: "to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually – to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed..."

Washington reminded those serving in national office at the time and future generations they have a responsibility to enforce and obey the laws.

What part of that is unclear?

Step up and assume the task you were given by the people of these United States. There were three branches of government created by the Founding Fathers to provide a system of checks and balances to avoid the tactics employed by this president.

In November 1986, an Act of Congress, known as the Simpson-Mazzoli Act, was signed by President Ronald Reagan.

This law, which dealt with illegal immigrants at that time, involved two branches of our government.

To the members of Congress I say, do your job.

Deal with Obama's lack of respect for the supreme law of the land and deal with the illegal immigrants who are here and who continue to cross our southern border every day.

Deb Palmieri

editor

Parkland Press

Northwestern Press